
INTRODUCTION

Design is more than how things look.
It is how an idea becomes visible, how a brand communicates, and how people connect with what they see.
I’m Polina Baleeva, a communication designer working across branding, packaging, and visual concepts. I explore the meaning behind each project and translate it into a distinctive visual language.
MY APPROACH
Find the idea. Build the system. Make it matter.
I believe strong design starts with understanding what needs to be communicated. From there, I look for a concept that gives the project its own character and develop it into a coherent visual system.
I’m interested in the relationship between meaning and form—between a central idea and the details that bring it to life. Whether I’m creating an identity, designing packaging, or exploring an experimental object, I aim to make every visual decision purposeful.
PROJECT 01 — BOOK MARKET IN NIZHNY NOVGOROD

A visual identity for a charitable book market.A book can be more than just a story. It can be a way to connect people, exchange ideas, and support a meaningful cause.Giving Book Market is a charitable event built around this very idea. The challenge was to create a visual identity that would communicate its open, lively character while bringing together all the different elements of the event.
Every purchase becomes part of a bigger story.
I approached the identity as a celebration of books, people, and the energy of gathering. Instead of framing charity as something distant or formal, the identity presents participation as an accessible and engaging experience. For me, this project represents the value of design that moves beyond presentation boards and becomes part of people’s actual experience.


The project was selected as a winner in a brief contest across HSE Art and Design campuses, and the market took place with my design in August 2026.
PROJECT 02 — NORTHERN STAR HOTEL
Northern Star Hotel
A branding concept for a small hotel in Totma, Russia.
Located in a historic wooden house, Northern Star is a place where every room has its own story.
The project explores how a visual identity can communicate a sense of place, create a recognizable character, and shape the guest experience.
The concept was well received by the client.
Follow the North Star
The star became the central metaphor of the identity: a symbol of direction, discovery, and a destination worth finding.
I used this idea as the foundation for a visual language that connects the hotel’s name with the experience of traveling to Totma and discovering its unique character.
The concept transforms the name from a mere label into a guiding principle for the brand’s communication.
PROJECT 03 — ABOVE SEA LEVEL
Above Sea LevelPackaging design for a tea brand.What if a tea’s origin could form the foundation of its visual identity?Above Sea Level explores the relationship between tea, landscape, and altitude. The packaging translates the elevation at which each tea is grown into a graphic system that links product information with visual storytelling.
A landscape in every package.
Altitude is the central organizing principle of the concept.Each tea is associated with a different height: 600, 1200, or 2000 meters. These values become part of the product’s identity, linking the information on the package to the landscape that inspires it.Topographic lines evoke terrain and elevation, transforming geographical references into a distinctive graphic element.The packaging becomes a visual interpretation of the product’s origin rather than simply a container for information.
PROJECT 04 — ESCAPE FROM THE PETRI DISH
Escape from the Petri Dish
An experimental furniture concept.
The modern office can feel like a petri dish—a transparent system governed by deadlines, meetings, tables, and performance indicators. Within this environment, people grow, interact, compete, and adapt to constant pressure. But sometimes, the impulse to escape becomes impossible to ignore.
Escape from the Petri Dish explores this tension through a series of experimental furniture forms.



































